The new over the air update feature of iOS5 work very well. Why is it good to update? Other than the latest bug fixes it keeps your iDevice secure as updates contain important security fixes. The following will give you a brief guide on how the over the air update, introduced in iOS 5, works.

Rather than needing to connect to iTunes and download a complete image of the OS (some 5-600Mb depending on your model) the over the air feature works directly off your iDevice and only download’s what it needs (40-50Mb depending on the model).

Plug your iDevice into a power source before continuing, it’s not good if you run out of power half way through doing this update.

If an update is available this screen will give you a summary. In the case of iOS 5.0.1 the major fix is the battery issue reported on iPhone 4S devices along with a few other bug fixes.

Click the download and install button.

After a period of time (depending on the speed of your internet connection) the update will download. When it’s ready to install it will ask if it is OK to restart and install. Click the install button to proceed.

The iDevice may restart a few times before the process is complete. When complete if you go back into the Settings, General, Software update tab you should see: